Cutting attachment for check-books or similar articles.



No. 75,8701 1 Patented Dec..|6, 1902'.

- 6. a. RITCHIE. CUTTING ATTACHMENT FORCHECK BOOKS 0R SIMILAR ARTICLES.

(Application filed May 17, 1902.)

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UNITED STATES GAINES GREENE RITCHIE,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF SANG AMO N, ILLINOIS.

CUTTING ATTACHMENT FOR CHECK-BOOKS OR- SIMILAR ARTICLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. '71 dated December 1902- Application filed May 17,1902. Serial No. 107,850. (No model.)

To all whmn it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GAINES GREENE RITCHIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sangamon, in the county of Macon and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Outting Attachment for Check-Books or Similar Articles, of which the following is a specification.

Thisinvention has forits object the production of a device designed to be attached to a check-book, money-order book, or to a blotter to be employed by clerks and bookkeepers in tearing off checks or coupons; and the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, as hereinafter shown and described, and finally pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective View of a conventional money-order book with the improvement attached to the front cover. Fig. 2 represents a longitudinal section thereof. Fig. 3 represents a front elevation of the device detached, the dotted line position of the clamping member showing it swung out in open position ready to receivea book element.

The same reference-numerals indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

The device may be attached to the cover or toa fly or other leaf of acheck-book or moneyorder book or to any other form of book from which portions are to be torn out, or it may be applied to a sheet of blotting-paper and employed in the same manner.

For the purpose of illustration the device is shown applied to the cover 10 of a conventional check or money-order book, the leaves of the book being represented at 11.

The attachment consists of a sheet-metal plate 12, having a cutting edge 13, upwardlyconverging sides forming the reduced upper portion 14, and an intermediate slit parallel to the cutting edge 13, and a wire springclamp 16, engaging the plate at 16.. This wire is suitably bent to form a clamp and has one end thereof passed through the plate and terminated in a short looped end 17, which forms a thumb-piece and which acts as a lever for actuating the clamping-arm thereof. The long arm of the clamp is bent into a loop 18 at the rear face 12 of the plate 12 adjacent to the point 16 where it passes through the plate. This arm then extends in an approximately straight line, forming the member 19,

and is bent at 20 upwardly and outwardly, forming the straight member 21. It is then bent inwardly at right angles and extended a short distance, forming the short straight member 22, which is bent at 23, at which point it engages the top edge of the plate 12 when applied and is bent downwardly, terminating in the arm 24, which is adapted to lie on the front face 12" of the plate 12 when the clamp is in operative position for holding the book element to the plate 12. The length of the slit 15 in the plate 12 will correspond to the width of the book element to which it will be attached, and in attaching the device the element to which it will be applied will be inserted through this slit and the end folded over the reduced end 14, as shown at in Figs. 1 and 2, and the long arm of the wire clamp pressed down over this folded-over edge and closely engaging it upon both faces of the plate, as shown, the arm 24 being extended over on the front face of the plate and clamping the book element thereto. By. this means the cover 10 or other element is held with sufficient force to prevent its removal by any pressure to which it would be likely to be subjected when in use, but which will yield to the force necessary to remove it when required.

When the plate 12 has been connected with the book element by means of its slit 15, the clamp is opened by pressing on the loop 17, which causes the long bent clamping member to swing outwardly, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3. After the book element has been folded down over the top edge of the plate 12 the clamping member is swung back into place, with the arms 19 and 21 engaging said book element and clamping it to the rear face of the plate and the arm 24 engaging the portion of said element which extends over the front face of the plate, as shown. By this simple means the attachment may be removably connected to the book or blotter with which it is designed to employ it and be at all times in position for instant use, and when the book is exhausted it can as readily be detached therefrom and applied to another book, one attachment being adapted to be applied successively to an indefinite number of books.

A blotter pad or sheet may be threaded into the slit 15 with the book elemen t, if preferred.

The device may be formed to fit any-sized book or blotter and may be of any suitable material and ornamented in any desired manner, the shape being varied to suit the book to which it is to be applied, and it may be modified in minor particulars without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

I claim as my invention- 1. As a new article of manufacture, an attachment for money-order books and the like consisting of a plate having a slit for receiving an element of said book, and having a tearing edge, and means carried bysaid plate for removably securing said element thereto.

2. As a new article of manufacture, an attachment for money-order books and the like, consisting of a plate having a slit adapted to receive an element of the book and having a tearing edge, and a spring-clamp carried by said plate and adapted to removably connect said book element to said plate.

3. In an attachment for money-order books and the like, a plate having a slit and a tearing edge, the portion of the book to be held adapted to be passed through said slit and folded over the edge of the plate, and means for removably securing said folded-over edge to said plate.

4. In an attachment for money-order books and the like, a plate having a slit and a tearing edge, the portion of the book to be held adapted to be passed through said slit, and a spring-clamp having a long arm and a short arm and movably engaging said plate, said long arm disposed to clamp said book portion to said plate and said short arm adapted to operate said long arm.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto afiixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

GAINES GREENE RITCHIE.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR L. HAWKER, THOMAS ELGIN. 

